Two Worlds and Memories
by StarlingChild4
Summary: One-shot. Kagome thinks about Inuyasha and Kikyo, after witnessing them under the Tree of Ages. Nothing original, just more of her feelings and thoughts of their relationship... Takes place after episode 46 in the anime, and around volume 16-17 in the manga (it's hard to keep track; such a long series!)


Kagome stood over the old well in her family's shrine. Her knuckles were white by her tight grip, and her forearms stiff from holding them in place for so long. She had been staring down the "bone-eater's well" for what felt like hours, though it was merely twenty minutes. But then, when the mind wanders, time seems irrelevant.

_I will always protect you... Kikyo... _

Kikyo. It was always Kikyo. Kagome knew she shouldn't have been as shocked as she was, finding Inuyasha and Kikyo under the Tree of Ages that fateful night. She always knew of Inuyasha's feelings, and she knew all about his history with the priestess... and yet...

Her mind kept replaying watching the two tragic lovers, holding each other, enveloped in the white light caused by Kikyo's soul-collectors. Kikyo struggled at first then accepted his embrace... they looked perfect together... as if Naraku had never torn them apart...

Kagome shook her head sharply, blinking unwanted tears from her eyes. Who was she kidding? She was just an ordinary middle-school girl, who accidentally fell backwards in time on a crazy adventure during Japan's Feudal Era. Other than that one... crazy detail, there was nothing special about her. Not really. Even her priestess powers were thanks to Kikyo-

A few splinters poked into her palms as she gripped the edge of the well even tighter. Kikyo. Why? Why of all people did she had to be the reincarnation of Inuyasha's former lover? Why couldn't it have been some other priestess? Or better yet, why any past life at all? Why couldn't she just live her ordinary life here, in modern Japan, and not have to worry about demons or Sacred Jewel shards or her heart being broken-

_There I go again. Heartbreak? What heartbreak? I'm not in love with Inuyasha! …. Am I? _

Kagome sighed and finally forced herself to let go of the well and wearily walk up the steps of the shrine and face the outdoors once more. It was a beautiful summer day; the wind made the season's heat more bearable and gave the Higarashi family shrine an air of tranquility and mystique. Besides the fact that they have a magical well that can transport Kagome five hundred years back in time (and only Kagome, apparently; Souta's already tried coming after her). But, of course, the rest of the world doesn't know that. The knowledge of that alone gave Kagome an unnerving feeling of solitude that no one else could quite understand.

_It's like I don't belong in this world anymore... but then again, neither do I belong in Inuyasha's world. I'm caught between two worlds... _

Kagome stopped suddenly, just now realizing she had walking aimlessly across the yard. A cool shadow halted her, and she looked up unsurprised at the presence of the Tree of Ages. Of course. This tree had so many memories for her; from playing under its branches as a child, to her first glimpse of Inuyasha, the half-demon who changed her life in so many ways-

"Inuyasha, you idiot," Kagome whispered in a sudden fierce tone. "You stupid, wonderful, pathetic jerk! Why did I ever have to meet you?"

_"KAGOME!" A loud slashing noise as demons were slaughtered and Inuyasha's red-robed form appeared in mid-air, his long, silver hair blowing in the wind... "Stay back, Kagome!" he would snarl as he took on another opponent... "No, you should stut up and let me protect you!" he snapped at her. _

_"Shut up and let me protect you!" _

_"…. Protect you!" _

It was Inuyasha's desire to protect Kagome, the girl he claimed to hate, that caused Tetseiga is transform and fatally injure his brother, Sesshomaru. He protected her, even though he said he hated her. Since then, everything changed. He was still rude, and a jerk, but slowly but surely, he grew increasingly protective of Kagome, even going as far as getting ridiculously jealous over Kouga, the head of the wolf-demon tribe. Sure, Kagome was flattered that Inuyasha cared so much for her, and yet... and yet...

_When he looks at me with soft eyes, he's not looking at me. He's looking at my "former me," his former lover... Kikyo... _

But was that always the case? Inuyasha never confused the two names, and whenever they were in battle, he sought for Kagome's protection above all else. His strength and protectiveness slowly won her over...even whenever he defended Kikyo, she admired his ability to be so loyal to someone like her...

_Why did she have to be ressurected?! Why couldn't she have stayed dead?!_

Shocked at herself for thinking such things, Kagome shook herself out of her reverie, and gazed once more at the Tree of Ages. She remembered seeing the boy pinned to the tree, the boy with long, silver hair, and soft dog-like ears she couldn't resist touching... Releasing him from his spell, and going on a long journey to collect the Sacred Jewel shards... the countless demons they encountered... the mysteries they uncovered...

_Inuyasha... Inuyasha... Inuyasha... _

Salty tears poured down her face, unleashing the bottled-up emotions she held in herself for who knows how long. She pressed a hand over her heart as realization hit her once and for all.

_I... I love him. I'm in love with Inuyasha. _

A tightening in her chest caved in and Kagome sank to her knees, sobbing uncontrollably, as memories circled around her mind, tormenting her, pleasing her, testing her. The cool wind blew through her hair, causing a few strands to get caught in her mouth, but she barely noticed. All she was aware of was the overwhelming desire to see Inuyasha again... even if it meant saying goodbye, even if it meant accepting his love for Kikyo once and for all...

Kagome looked up at the Tree of Ages, and whispered, "I just need to see him one last time..."


End file.
